Places in Estonia

The walled old town of Tallinn is a beautiful old medievel city. Historic churches, shops, and restaurants line the cobblestone streets. I’ve been to Tallinn once before. I think I was there prior to the influx of cruise ships…and the flood of tourists from Europe and the U.S. has changed the flavor of Tallinn. People dressed in traditional costume sell everything from amber to roasted nuts. Open air markets fill the city square selling handmade goods—clothing, hats, chocolate, jewelry, and so forth.
We caught a taxi from the ship to Old...

Estonia is a small nation with a turbulent history. Tallinn is its capital. Founded by a Danish King, sold to a German Order of Knights, ruled by the Swedes and Russians, all left their mark on this unique place. Tallinn was heavily damaged in WW II but Old Town is restored and a UNESCO World Heritage site. City walls, towers, ramparts, facades, Gothic style houses, narrow streets, and domed and spired churches all give the place its unique character.
We had our first stop in Palace Square for Toompea Castle and the home of the Estonian...

17 -18 August 2014
Tallinn is a historic city dating back to medieval times. It became a pawn in the geopolitical games of its big neighbours, passing into Swedish hands in 1561 and then to Russia under Peter the Great in 1710. By World War I and the ensuing brief Estonian independence (starting 1918) Tallinn's population had reached 150,000.Estonia was eventually occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940, only to be conquered by Nazi Germany (1941–44) and then retaken by the Soviets. In World War II, the city was quite extensively bombed by the...

While in Tallinn we asked locals where in Estonia would they suggest to visit in order to see a rural laid-back area. Oteppa was suggested more than once. So off to there we went. It was only a 2 hour train ride from Tallinn to Tartu, and then a 40 km bus ride to Oteppa; total cost for two ~$27.
Our B&B host, Keemo, met us at the bus station and on to the Villa Ottilia where we met his wife Tiina, our hostess. Our stay 2 day stay with them was very enjoyable, and we all became good friends it seemed instantly. They even took us on a day's...

Departed Amsterdam on Baltic Air and flew to Riga, Latvia where we transferred to a small turbo-prop plane for a quick 30 minute flight to Tallinn, Estonia. Easy bus ride from airport, the #2, to downtown where we walked about 15 minutes to meet the owner of the apartment we rented while in Tallinn. Comfortably appointed, spacious, w/ modern conveniences, and very conveniently located to the downtown sights, yet in a quiet neighborhood.
Spent the next morning on a free city walking tour conducted by the Information Bureau; the ubiquitous...

Tallinn
On our first evening, the low sunlight was beautiful and we wandered from our hotel into Old Tallinn. We were overwhelmed by the swarms of tourists, apparently from a big Celebrity cruise ship. Sometimes there are seven or eight cruise ships docked at Tallinn. As the Old Town is pretty compact, I would not want to be there then.
We ate at the "Old Hansa" restaurant. It was somewhat kitchy with rough wooden tables, pottery tankards, medievally costumed staff and criers who chased tourists and dragged them into the restaurant. There...

Riga to Tallinn
We went by car with a driver AND a guide from Riga to Tallinn. Pretty posh! Grammar has never done that before. There is no longer a direct train route but we could have gone by bus. Traveling as we did allowed us to make some stops.
We had three significant stops:
The first was at the Bikernieki Forest just outside Riga. This is a beautiful, mixed forest but it has a dreadful history. It was the biggest site of mass killing and burial of victims of Nazi terror in Latvia. From 1941 to 1944, 40,000 people, including Latvian...

UNESCO World Heritage Site descriptions (these are the official short descriptions)
Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow, Russia
Inextricably linked to all the most important historical and political events in Russia since the 13th century, the Kremlin (built between the 14th and 17th centuries by outstanding Russian and foreign architects) was the residence of the Great Prince and also a religious centre. At the foot of its ramparts, on Red Square, St Basil's Basilica is one of the most beautiful Russian Orthodox monuments.
Lake Baikal,...

We've been there before but when you're so close, you should visit.
Last night we took at look at options for our trip to Tallinn. The hotel that we're staying at is right next door to Viking Line who has ferries that go to Tallinn (and Stockholm), so it makes sense to travel with them. Unfortunately, when we go to book online, it would appear that no ferries are available with them as the boat is out of action for planned maintenance until the 24th January. Do'h! The other alternative is a ferry with Tallink-Silja line. We went with them...

Waking up every morning at 5:06 is strange and specific but becoming normal.. Attended to emails as usual but seemed to take ages to get nothing done this morning. Brekky was scrambled eggs instead of cereal... I'm really living on the edge aren't i? One of their coffees that's so strong you could stand a spoon up in it and back to the room to finish up and check out. But my key wouldn't work. I raced downstairs to get it fixed and later I found the hotel had turned all of our keys off. It freaked me out as it's not nice to be late and keep...

The ferry slowly pulled out of Helsinki harbour to head south across the Baltic Sea on 2nd October, the sun shone and it felt good to be back on the move again. I am very grateful to Maamar and Susanna for putting me up / up with me for the last couple of weeks, as I waited for my passport and the Trans-Sib visas from the UK and tried to finish off my pre-trip admin. Unfortunately, as the ship sailed on, I realised that I should really have sorted the Vietnam visa too, rather than wait until I get to Beijing, as I had had the time to...

Ahhhh Dear Trip Journal, hmmmh here I am yet again.......
There have been times during the solo parts of my travelling adventure when dear Trip Journal, you have been my companion and I have enjoyed spending a lonely evening recording and reliving the days events with you.
On other occasions, after a long day of sightseeing, many hours of walking, staying up to then record my exciting day of adventures at midnight, loading photos etc, (sometimes in a dimly lit hotel foyer using a dodgy internet system) has seemed a bit of a pain and huge...